


In Other Words

by Ellienerd14



Category: Class (TV 2016)
Genre: Charlie is a sweetheart, Developing Relationship, Filling in gas pre-Nighvisting, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Matteusz deserves better, cuteness, lots of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-06
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-10-15 19:58:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10556832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellienerd14/pseuds/Ellienerd14
Summary: The five times Charlie and Matteusz say 'I love you' (before they say 'I love you').





	1. "I still want to be with you."

**Author's Note:**

  * For [CloOm](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CloOm/gifts).



_**"I still want to be with you."** _

* * *

 They had avoided the subject successfully for a whole week. Matteusz wasn't entirely sure if they were dating or not. He had hoped so; they had been sharing soft looks for a weeks before Charlie had _finally_ asked him out.

Sometimes Charlie leant in when they spoke at lunch and Matteusz thought - hoped - that they were going to kiss again. (Charlie always pulled away at the last minute. Matteusz wanted to tell him to not be afraid. That he wasn't going to break his heart.)

Charlie was the one who brought it up, still sketching as an excuse to avoid eye contact. "It was called Rhodia."

"Rhodia?" Matteusz echoed. It didn't sound like English (or Polish). It didn't even sound _human_. 

"My world," Charlie clarified. "My... home. It's gone now."

"Because of the shadows?"

He nodded, putting pencil to paper again. Matteusz wondered what he was drawing.

"The Shadow Kin killed everyone. A single attack and I was suddenly the last of my kind." Charlie's voice shook. He sounded like he was on the edge of tears. (Or like he was just on the edge of falling apart.)

"That sounds awful." Matteusz reached out and took Charlie's shaking hand in his own. For a second it felt like ice. Then it felt like second nature. Like they were meant to hold hands. 

"I have nightmares about it." Charlie blinked and a tear ran down his cheek. "The Doctor saved us. He took us to Earth and told us to find a way to fit in."

"Have you?" Matteusz asked him, hoping desperately that Charlie would look at him.

"I didn't think I could fit in. I'm so… strange." Charlie put down his sketch book. He had left it open and Matteusz noticed he had been drawing a sunset. "Being with you helps."

"Being with you," Matteusz started, trying to find the right words, "is special. We both didn't fit in. You didn't care I was not like other people."

"Because of your accent?" Charlie asked. "I- I wasn't trying to be rude. I like your voice. It's pretty." He was getting more flushed than Matteusz had seen him. It was incredibly cute. "Why does my face feel warm? I don't like it."

"Is because you're embarrassed." Matteusz couldn't help laughing, although it made him feel mean. "You're blushing."

"Oh." Charlie touched his faintly pink cheeks. "Is blushing normal?"

"Don't worry. It makes you look cute." Matteusz' compliment didn't help his slightly pink complexion.

"I've never blushed before. You must have done something to me." Charlie smiled briefly and beautifully at Matteusz. 

"You'll have to get used to it," Matteusz said, deciding to be brave. "I'm not leaving you."

"Even though I'm an alien?" Charlie asked, in a much more serious tone. "And a prince?"

"I still want to be with you." Matteusz told him. "Together."

"Like at prom?" Charlie asked. "Before the prom?"

"Yes, together as a couple." Matteusz wasn't sure how he got so lucky. (Charlie was an alien but no one was perfect.)

"Does that involve more," Charlie paused, nose scrunched up adorably, "I don't know the word. But the mouth thing. That feels nice?"

Matteusz smiled at him. Every time that he thought Charlie couldn't get any more adorable, he found a way.

"Like this." Charlie leaned in and kissed him quickly, taking Matteusz by surprise. "Did I do it right?"

"You - you did it perfectly." Charlie was blushing again. "It's called _kissing_."

"Oh," Charlie smiled. "Can we kiss again?"

"You didn't have to ask."


	2. "You deserve better."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentions of homophobia in this one. Hopefully not that bad but still skip it if you feel the need.

_**"You deserve better."** _

* * *

 Dating an alien wasn't that different from dating someone human. (Not that Matteusz had dated that many boys to compare. Alien or human.) Being with Charlie felt completely natural. Even when he was acting strangely; either by googling what birds were or asking how to use cutlery (although Matteusz suspected the latter was a joke) he still managed to be close to the perfect boyfriend.

"Are you still grounded?" Charlie put his phone down. "I think that means you can't leave the house. But you have."

"Only for school."

"I don't understand the point," Charlie said.

"My parents didn't like that I went to prom with you. They probably grounded me to stop me talking to you." Matteusz kissed Charlie's cheek. "Like that would work."

"I'm sorry." Charlie sounded like he genuinely meant it.

"Not your fault. They were always like this. Even before I got a boyfriend." They weren't as bad as they had been when he'd first come out to them two years ago. There was less shouting and more passive aggressive silence. Maybe prom had caused more arguments but Matteusz didn't want Charlie to feel guilty for his parents being terrible, homophobic people.

"I meant for prom. I didn't realise that a religion could promote hate. Back home," Charlie paused, like he was trying to decide if Rhodia was still home, "we didn't have those kind of views."

"No one?" Matteusz couldn't imagine a society like that. Which said more about Earth than Charlie's past home.

"We had more pressing matters." 

"Not everyone is bad. My babcia didn't care." Matteusz missed her. He hoped he'd be able to see her again but it seemed unlikely he'd be going to Poland again any time soon. "She took me to town. We were buying books in English to help me learn the language. She brought me a book about being gay. I still have it."

"Do you miss her?" Charlie asked. "She sounds wonderful."

"She is. I miss her a lot. I haven't seen her for a year." Matteusz couldn't imagine how homesick Charlie must be. Missing his home country was one thing but leaving _everything_  behind seemed even worse. It was unimaginable.

"I don't get it," Charlie looked up at him. "I said the wrong thing at prom."

"You didn't understand," Matteusz reassured him.

"But you still kissed me." Charlie looked puzzled. "Why would you do that anyway?"

"I wanted to." It was a simple answer but a true one. It was more than just prom that led up to them kissing. "And only you would say something like that. I can think of no one else that strange."

"Do you really like that I'm strange?" Charlie asked. "Most people just give me funny looks."

"I like it. You're funny." Matteusz smiled at him. "And you weren't scared off by my parents."

"Has that happened before?" Charlie never seemed to run out of questions to ask.

"No. But I was afraid it would happen. That's why I hadn't told my parents about my dates before. You didn't care and you didn't get sarcasm. You just smiled at me."

"I always smile at you," Charlie said.

"Exactly." Matteusz kissed the top of his head. He beamed.

"Your parents don't deserve you," Charlie reached out and held his hand. Matteusz smiled again. (Charlie just had that effect on him.)

"At least I have you."

"Still," Charlie leaned against his shoulder, "You deserve better."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apprantly this idea is quite popular. Thank you for the feedback. It really helped to motivate me. 
> 
> I'm hoping to get this (and my Tanya/gf) fanfic done this week so I really apprechaite the support.


	3. "I won't let anyone hurt you."

  _**"I won't let anyone hurt you."** _ ****

* * *

The camera quality on Skype wasn't known for being brilliant but Matteusz could still make out a small smile on Charlie's face. He didn't look hurt, which was a relief.

"Are you okay?" He asked. "The alien didn't hurt you?"

"It killed the coach. I think." Charlie looked guilty. "It might have been our fault."

Matteusz tried not to picture it. "That's awful." 

"He was a bad person. He killed people." Charlie didn't seem convinced either. "April's right and we shouldn't kill anyone. Although it was actually the dragon." 

"How are you coping?" He asked instead of the countless other questions that would lead to a much darker conversation. 

"I want the blood and violence to end." Matteusz had a feeling he was the only one who Charlie would give such a honest answer to. "I've seen so much already."

"I wish I could help." 

Charlie half-smiled, leaning on his arm. "You already do so much for me. I'm lucky to have you." 

"I would say it was cheesy but I don't think you know what that means." Charlie shook his head in confirmation. "Thank you. Lucky to have you as well." 

"How are things with your family?" Charlie asked. He asked the question almost every time they talked. Matteusz was grateful, he was limited with whom he could talk about his parents with. 

"The same. Mostly quiet. My matka said goodnight to me before they left, which could be a good sign." Matteusz stayed hopeful there was a chance his parents could change their mind and be accepting, although it seemed impossible. 

"Quill kissed a robot," Charlie said, changing the subject. 

"The dragon was a robot?" Matteusz wasn't sure if he could look at his physics teacher the same. It was weird enough knowing she lived with his boyfriend. (They had a complicated relationship - really complicated.) Or that she actually an alien. 

"The inspector was a robot. Is that not normal here?" Charlie looked innocent but Matteusz was convinced that he was playing dumb. Charlie did that a lot. 

"Not that I know of," he answered, laughing. "So the rift is closed now?"

"For now," he corrected. "And I think it's called a bunghole now."

"Really?" 

Charlie rolled his eyes, clearly sharing his opinion on the title. "Tanya thought of it." 

"As long as it doesn't cause any more trouble." It seemed unlikely that the rift (bunghole) wouldn't cause any more problems but Matteusz tried his best to be optimistic. "I don't like the idea of you getting hurt as a result."

"I promised the Doctor to deal with the bung- _rift_. He saved my life, I need to keep that promise I made to him." Charlie could be stubborn. 

"Not at the cost of your own life. He saved you for a reason." And Matteusz needed Charlie. He had never felt so good about a boy before and he never wanted it to stop feeling that way. "Promise me if the rift opens again, you'll let me know before you go running into danger." 

Charlie had the adorable half-smile again. "Are you trying to protect me?"

"Someone has to," Matteusz replied. "And I am your boyfriend." They had to be. They had been kissing, flirting and acting like they were dating for two weeks now. 

"If that's what boyfriends are supposed to do, I won't let anyone hurt you," Charlie promised. If Matteusz was close enough to do so, he would have kissed Charlie then. But he was two streets and one glitchy screen away from his boyfriend, so instead he just admired his blush and promised himself to give him an extra kiss tomorrow. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish Matteusz was in episode 3. :( 
> 
> It's been a while but I'm trying to get this finished now. 
> 
> Let me know what you thought!


	4. "I drew you a picture."

  _**"I drew you a picture."** _

* * *

 Matteusz was always being surprised by Charlie, which was only to be expected when he was from another planet. The surprises were mostly welcome though, they showed a new, often softer side to him. 

One of the most unexpected things Matteusz had learnt about him (not counting the alien thing) (or the prince thing) (or Quill) was that Charlie was an artist. He loved drawing but became suddenly shy whenever Matteusz had asked about it. This made it another surprise when Charlie pushed his usually precious sketchbook over to him. 

"Should I be worried?" 

Charlie frowned. "Why would you be worried?"

Matteusz laughed at his cluelessness. "No, I'm just teasing." 

"You should make a sign for when you're doing that," Charlie said, mostly serious. "I still don't get the human sense of humour." 

"You'll get it eventually." 

Charlie sighed. "I hope so." 

Matteusz picked up the sketch book. The paper was the soft, smooth kind that was clearly expensive. Charlie seemed well off despite Quill's teacher salary being the only one in the house. He had a feeling the Doctor had something to do with it. He still didn't understand much about the Doctor despite Charlie trying to explain. He was - according to his boyfriend - a Time Lord and a hero of Earth and countless other planets in the galaxy. Still, Matteusz couldn't help but still see him as the weird caretaker. ("He's a force of nature. A God. A hero. Even Daleks fear him!" Charlie had said. "Yes but I saw him fall off a ladder last year.") 

Charlie looked nervous. "I hope you like it. I drew you a picture." 

"You did?" Matteusz asked, flicking through the sketch book. The pages were full of beautiful drawings. The drawing varied between natural scenery, of what must have been Rhodia. There was also flowers which were clearly from Earth as well. Matteusz would have loved to spend more time looking at Charlie's other pictures but there was a page marked with a post-it note. 

His picture was beautiful. It was more detailed than his other sketches and painted with watercolors. It was of the two them, at the prom, hands linked and smiling at each other. "That's amazing. You're such a great artist." 

Charlie blushed, which was still cute. "Do you really think so?" 

"Yes. Thank you. I love it." 

He beamed. "You make me happy." Charlie was usually blunt and his honesty was something else Matteusz adored about him. Charlie didn't hold back on his feelings or on the truth. It was a nice contrast between his parents who avoided talking to him about anything important. Charlie made Matteusz feel like it was safe to talk about himself and who he was. He didn't have to hold back with Charlie. 

"You make me happy too." 

His boyfriend smiled like he was the sun. "You can keep it." 

"The drawing?" 

Charlie nodded. "It's for you after all. I wanted to give you something to show how much I appreciate our courtship. The internet suggested flowers and texting but I thought you'd appreciate art more." 

Matteusz laughed again, leaning into him. "Did you just use the word 'courtship'?" 

"I thought it was fitting." 

"You are the biggest dork I've ever met." 

Charlie smiled. "In a good way?" 

"Definitely." Matteusz closed the gap between them to kiss him. It felt the same as before - electric. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love the artsy!Charlie headcanon, which we only really see in ep 3. 
> 
> Comments win my love! And my updates!


	5. "Do you want to lie with me?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For @cloOm who requested Marlie cuddles. Hope you liked it.

_**"Do you want to lie with me?"** _

* * *

 

Matteusz hadn't picked up his phone. He hadn't thought to pick up anything other than his coat. Which wouldn't had been a problem if he was going back home.

_He wasn't going back home._

Matteusz still had his now-useless house keys that weighed down his pocket. He held them tightly in his fist - too tightly, the house key was starting to cut into his hand. Matteusz chucked it onto the floor, which didn't make him feel as better as he had hoped.

He picked the keys back up again. He'd need it to collect his things when his parents were out. It was horrible to think about but was only half the reason he was falling apart. The other half was too awful to process.

He hadn't imagined his father would actually kick him out. They fought a lot between the angry silences that said too much. Matteusz  _couldn't_  stop being gay and his father  _wouldn't_  change his mind on it. Charlie had been the straw that broke his back.

Matteusz didn't have anywhere to go. He wandered the streets for a few minutes, even though there was only one place he could go. He had no family other than his cousin. Adam lived on the other side of London, which required a phone to call ahead and a wallet to pay for a taxi. Matteusz had neither.

He was stood in front of Charlie's front door. He'd been to the house before, usually as a refuge when things got too bad at home.

Things were the worst they could be. He knocked on the door, which was answered by a grumbling Miss Quill, who made a big show of sighing when they made eye contact.

"Alien invasion or teen angst?" She asked dryly.

"Teen angst is a pejorative phrase," he replied.

Miss Quill remained unimpressed. "He's upstairs."

Matteusz usually tried to make some kind of small talk with his teacher but he didn't even try. He was too exhausted, too drained. Miss Quill seemed relived as she disappeared back into the living room, muttering about hiring someone to open the door.

He didn't bother knocking and just pushed open the door to Charlie's bedroom. He'd been in there plenty of times before.

Charlie stood up from the desk and stepped closer. His expression must have given away how upset Matteusz was because Charlie's first words to him were. "What's wrong?"

"They've thrown me out."

Charlie stepped closer, looking a mix of horrified and sympathetic. "That's... that's not fair."

Matteusz sat at the end of the bed. He'd been walking for over an hour in the freezing cold. He needed to sit down. "I know. I knew that they hated me but I didn't think this... I had hoped they would at least look out for me a little."

"Hey," Charlie said. He sat at the edge of the bed and put his arm around him. Usually he didn't initiate the contact but he could clearly tell it was needed. "You're safe here. With me. I promise." 

"I didn't bring anything. I left it all behind."

"We can sort that tomorrow. Quill will break in if necessary. It's not the most important thing right now."

"It feels like my world is ending," Matteusz whispered. Charlie paused for a minute and then went back to tracing patterns on his back. It was slightly relaxing but Matteusz was still anxious. The future had never felt so uncertain.

"Umm, would it-" Charlie seemed nervous. "Would it help if... Do you want to lie with me?" He seemed embarrassed about asking it, a gentle flush was forming across his cheeks. "I've found it helped a lot in the past when I'm upset."

"Yeah."

The lay down together, which was mostly awkward until Charlie pulled him onto his chest with unexpected strength and started to play with his hair. Matteusz relaxed a little. Charlie's chest made a soft pillow and his boyfriend smelt nice. (Like the laundry section of a super market if someone had spilt tea there. Which didn't seem as appealing as it was. Basically Charlie smelt like vanilla and tea. It was nice. He was weird.)

"I promise you that you're safe here with me," Charlie told him. He kissed the top of matteusz' head. "I promise, I promise, I promise."

 _I love you,_ Matteusz thought, completely unsurprised it had popped into his head. It was the first time but it was so obvious he was surprised he hadn't realised before.

The real question was:  _did Charlie have love where he was from?_

Then Charlie pressed another kiss on his temple and Matteusz decided he must have a little love in him.

 _I love you,_ he thought again.

"Thank you," he said out loud.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would love feedback! I enjoyed writing this short fic and would love to hear your opinions on it. Tell me your favourite chapter or if you thought it was good. :) Or send me an ask on my Tumblr @bazwillendinflames about it. I do take prompts btw (just with a slow response time).
> 
> Can't wait to write fluff for more fics. :)

**Author's Note:**

> Basically cute snapshots of the developing relationship of Matteusz and Charlie as they fall in love. 
> 
> Please leave a comment! I love feedback. ❤


End file.
